After claiming the last qualification spot for the final in the women’s pair repechage,the U.S. crew of Liz Euiler (Meredith, N.H.) and Solveig Imsdahl (Schoenwald, Germany) took third on Saturday at the 2018 Pan American Games Qualification Regatta in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The pair raced to an 8:02.05 finish, following closely behind the second-place crew from Mexico of Maite Arrillaga Garay and Fernanda Dinorah Ceballos Lara, which finished in 8:00.45. The crew of sisters Melita and Antonia Abraham Schussler from Chile wine the race in a 7:54.09.

The women’s pair earned the right to be nominated to the 2019 Pan American Games, along with the women’s double, men’s four, men’s double sculls, men’s single sculls and lightweight men’s double sculls.

In the women’s double, Julia Lonchar and Margaret Fellows (Warwick, Mass.) crossed the line fourth in a 7:04.35, just behind the third-place crew from Argentina of Maria Sol Ordas and Oriana Ruiz that clocked a 7:04.01. The double from Chile took first in 7:00.06, while the crew from Cuba finished second in 7:01.85.

The men’s four of Jonathan Zagroba (New Rochelle, N.Y.), Veton Celaj (New York, N.Y.), Paul Verni (New Rochelle, N.Y.) and Thaddeus Babiec (Alexandria, Va.) finished fifth in its final, crossing the line in 7:13.65. The crew from Argentina finished first in 6:38.30.

Nathan Lado (New York, N.Y.) and Wes Vear (Marquette, Mich.) earned a sixth-place finish in the men’s double sculls. The U.S. crew crossed the line in 7:10.70, while the double from Argentina clenched first place in 6:48.83.

Lucas Bellows (Forest Lake, Minn.) finished seventh overall after a first-place finish in the B final of the men’s single sculls. Clocking a 7:58.52, Bellows finished about 11 seconds ahead of second-place Peru. Cuba’s Angel Fournier Rodriguez took first in the A final in 7:41.65.

In the lightweight women’s double sculls, Sydney Taylor (Dover, Del.) and Keara Twist crossed the line in 8:08.38, taking third place in the B final and ninth overall. The crew from Chile won the A final, finishing in a 7:34.90.

In the the lightweight men’s double sculls B final, Cooper Hurley (Andover, Mass.) and James McCullough (Philadelphia, Pa.) finished third in the tight field, as places two to four finished within seconds of each other. The crew from Mexico win the A final, racing to a 6:35.90 finish.

In total, 12 U.S. boats are racing at the qualification regatta. Crews that finish high enough in each boat category will earn the right to be nominated to represent the U.S. at the 2019 Pan American Games taking place July 26-August 11, 2019, in Lima, Peru. An explanation of the qualification system can be found here. Racing is scheduled to resume with finals on Sunday.

For more information on the 2018 Pan American Games Qualification Regatta, click here. For more information on the 2019 Pan American Games, click here.

Additionally, click here for the official Facebook page of the regatta. There you can find a livestream for Saturday and Sunday’s portion of the regatta.